


Leave The Past Behind

by LydiaLanguish



Category: Descendants (Disney Movies), The Isle of the Lost Series - Melissa de la Cruz
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, Fluff and Angst, Light Angst, M/M, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Slow Burn, everyone is bi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-04
Updated: 2019-02-04
Packaged: 2019-10-22 09:24:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,305
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17660090
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LydiaLanguish/pseuds/LydiaLanguish
Summary: Instead of bringing over four kids from the Isle, after Ben became king, he founded a refuge and brought over as many kids as he could. Things seem to go great, for a lot of people. But for kids like Harry, if you can't leave the past behind, you were left behind instead. Ben takes him under his wing in hopes of saving the boy again, and they both get more than they bargained for.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> The first chaper is brief, but the others will be longer. This was intended to be more of an introduction to the idea of the refuge.
> 
> I switch between Ben and Harry’s POV.

The Isle Integration Initiative was Ben’s first project as king. He'd brought over hundreds of innocent children from the Isle and had a refuge for them called the Institute for Isle-borns. People like his parents, Fairy Godmother, and heroes from the past all pitched in to create a conducive, safe environment for the Isle-born kids, with a makeshift school included. And from the reports, it was becoming something of a success. Once a month, Ben would go down and talk with some of the kids, but for his safety, he couldn't get close without security. It was a little hard, treating those kids like criminals.

Younger children, like Dizzy, daughter of Drizella, were able to move onto better things faster. Ben had an adoption system set up as well, that once a child was ready to leave Integration, they'd be put up for adoption. To his relief, a lot of good families were on the waiting list for Isle-borns. 

But he wasn't sure how to appropriately respond to the issues he was running into with the kids his age. 

They were much more troubled than the younger kids, and even if they  _ were  _ to finish integration, no one was looking to adopt a sixteen year old child of their worst enemy. 

So Ben's idea was to send them to Auradon Prep to finish their education. However, even with that in place, only a select few teens from the Isle had been cleared by Fairy Godmother. Some of whom had asked to stay at the Institute until their friends could go with them. Ben was so lost.

 

\---

 

Harry stared out his window. No matter how many times he'd seen the stars, they still amazed him. 

“What are you thinking about?” Gil asked curiously, sitting next to him.

“Home,” Harry said, running his finger down the cold glass. 

“But- King Ben and Fairy Godmother say  _ this _ is our home,” Gil blinked.

“This is hardly freedom,” Uma grumbled. “But I have to admit, it's better than the Isle”

Harry wasn't so sure. His family was still there, his father and mother… His sister had been brought over to Auradon, but she'd already been cleared by Fairy Godmother and had left, so he had no real idea how she was. 

“I feel like I'm in prison,” Harry admitted quietly.

“Harry, the  _ Isle _ was prison!” Uma crossed her arms. “You can't tell me you miss it!”

“So what if I do?” Harry frowned.

“Talking like that won't get us out of here, you know,” Uma shook her head. “It's hard enough getting past that fairy, the last thing we need is for you to start talking like an Isle-heart.”

Isle-heart was what a lot of kids were labeled with. It was someone who wanted to go back, or missed their family, or had a ‘hard time adjusting.’ Harry  _ was _ an Isle-heart. But Uma was right that he wouldn't get out of the Institute by showing it. 

“...King Ben is due today,” Gil tried. “He usually says something really cool.”

“I don't think I'm going to see him,” Harry shrugged. 

“But-”

“Let him, Gil,” Uma frowned. “You're not gonna help him.” She put her hand on Harry’s shoulder. “Look, it'll get easier. I'm not happy with the way things are, but it's good for us. Let's leave the Isle behind finally. We  _ deserve  _ this.”

Harry nodded, turning back to the view of the sky. Uma and Gil would be cleared soon, and he'd be left behind as an Isle-heart. It made everything feel hopeless. No matter what Uma said, Harry knew he  _ didn't  _ deserve anything like this. He belonged on the Isle, with his family. 

...He belonged in the trash with Auradon’s leftovers. 


	2. Moving On, As They Say

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fairy Godmother tries to help Harry and sends in reinforcements. Ben.

“Happy birthday, Harry,” Fairy Godmother greeted as Harry walked into the evaluation room. He'd already been interviewed four times but hadn't managed to get out yet.

Fairy Godmother had put a truth charm around the evaluation room, so to be sure no one lied their way out, but with people like Mal and Jay getting out, Harry wasn't sure it worked. 

But it always worked on him. And anyway, Jay was involved with the Institute Tourney team, and Mal was the best student in goodness classes, so they had a handicap. 

“Thanks,” Harry muttered, sitting in the chair across from Fairy Godmother.

“Did you do anything fun?” She pushed.

“No,” Harry raised an eyebrow. “Birthdays don't mean anything back home, and Uma and Gil are both gone already, so it'd be pointless anyway.”

Stupid truth charm.

“Well, that's a part of Auradon culture,” Fairy Godmother reminded. “You have to remember to try and move past the culture of the Isle, it won't help you now.”

“I  _ do _ try,” Harry admitted. “I just can't get there.”

“Why do you think that is?” Fairy Godmother questioned. 

“I don't belong out there,” Harry said, crossing his arms. He hated evals. “I don't belong in here, either.”

“Where do you think you belong?” 

“...I belong on the Isle,” Harry looked away, out the window where he could see the Isle in the distance. “But I don't want to go back.”

“Why do you think you belong there?” Fairy Godmother frowned now.

“That's where Auradon sends the things that aren't good enough,” Harry reasoned. “People who don't fit the design, ideas they don't want…  _ That's  _ where I belong.”

“No, Harry,” Fairy Godmother tried. “You're having delusions of self worth. It's a side effect from the culture of the Isle, nothing more.”

“You keep acting like you can fix me,” Harry shook his head. “There's no potential, nothing to be made out of me. You might as well send me back to my room and try again in a couple months.”

“You're sixteen now, Harry,” Fairy Godmother sighed. “You have to want to move on to other things. This isn't a forever home, you know, it’s just a transition.”

“Last I checked, no one is waiting to adopt  _ me!” _ Harry hissed. “Harriet never writes, Uma and Gil have moved on, there  _ is _ no forever home for me!”

“Harry, you have to have hope,” Fairy Godmother said.

“I never had hope in the first place,” Harry shook his head. “I'm not getting it now.”

Fairy Godmother gave Harry a sad smile, nodding a little. “Well, tell me how your temper is.” 

“Still bad,” Harry pouted, crossing his arms. These were the questions that kept him in the Institute. 

“And your stealing?”

“I'm not stealing  _ as much _ ,” Harry bit his lip. 

“Well that's good,” Fairy Godmother nodded, though didn't look convinced. “That's all I need today Harry, thank you. And happy birthday, really.”

Harry nodded, standing up. He didn't know why he was even being evaluated, everyone knew he wasn't going to work in Auradon. He should just be sent back to the Isle. 

 

\--

 

Ben walked into the Institute, feeling good about the progress of the place. Most of the kids they had brought from the Isle were adjusting well, some of them topping classes or winning tourney games. 

They were still bringing kids over, but the Isle was running out of Isle-borns. 

“Ben,” Fairy Godmother greeted as he walked into her office. “Good to see you.

“Fairy Godmother,” Ben smiled. “How are things going? Any more gang fights?”

“Notably less,” Fairy Godmother raised her eyebrow in an amused smile. “Actually, I don't think we've had more than three altercations since your last visit.”

Wow, that was…  _ really good.  _

“That's great news!” Ben grinned. “Do you think we'll be able to Integrate more kids soon?”

“Actually Ben…” Fairy Godmother tilted her head to the side, looking him over. “There  _ is _ someone who I think would be ready in a few weeks.”

“Weeks?” Ben repeated, feeling a little disappointed. “How long have they been here?”

“Eight months,” Fairy Godmother admitted. 

“They were an original?” Ben blinked. He'd thought all the originals had moved on. Well, not  _ all  _ of them, he supposed. He knew in the back of his mind that they hadn't moved over a hundred kids out of the Institute yet, but third trip kids were already being placed with families. 

“Yes, he's had a hard time adjusting,” She sighed. “But I think if you talked to him, he might benefit from that.”

“Oh, of course,” Ben agreed at once. “Who is he?”

“His name is Harry,” Fairy Godmother said, pulling open a drawer and starting to dig through it. “He just turned sixteen. Here,” She pulled a file from the drawer, holding it out for Ben, who took it immediately. 

He was the son of Hook, apparently. Anger issues, violent, trouble with kleptomania… Ben almost hated to think it wasn't unusual. “I'll absolutely talk to him,” He said, standing up. He was excited and ready to go. “Just send your report over to Lumiere, I'll get it from him later.”

Ben had a couple of the security guards take him to Harry Hook’s room. That was one thing. When they first started the Institute, Ben wasn't supposed to talk to any of the kids in one on one situations, but as they got to know the Isle kids, they found they weren't as dangerous as they'd first thought, and Ben was considered something of a hero to them. 

The boy opened the door for him, blinking. “You're… You're King Ben.”

“You're Harry Hook,” Ben said back, holding his hand out for the kid to shake. 

“...What do you want?” Harry asked, eyeing Ben's hand but making no move to shake it.

“I um, I wanted to get to know you,” Ben said, pulling his hand back, but not letting his grin slip. 

“That's… Hardly necessary,” Harry said, giving Ben a strained smile, starting to close the door. 

“I heard that you just turned sixteen!” Ben said quickly, effectively stopping the boy from closing the door all the way. “Happy birthday. When was it?”

“Yesterday,” Harry frowned in confusion. “Is that why you're here?”

“No, I just… I feel bad that I haven't had a chance to connect with you,” Ben admitted. Gaston’s son Gil had talked about Harry before, about how good a friend he was. “I've heard all about you.”

“Oh,” Harry deflated a little. 

...Okay, so that wasn't right. “Um, can I come in?” 

Harry looked Ben over before nodding and opening the door all the way again. 

“Thanks,” Ben smiled, stepping into the room. Glancing around the small space, he started to see the effects of anger issues and kleptomania. There was random stuff shoved in spaces that couldn’t all be his, and things thrown all around the room. The window overlooking the ocean was cracked and there was a hole in one of the walls. Ben also noted a poster from his coronation that he'd wager was covering another. “So uh, do you like it here?” He asked, hoping he sounded casual enough.

“Um, yeah,” Harry nodded, pursing his lips awkwardly.

“...Did you do anything fun for your birthday?” Ben pressed.

“Like what?” Harry scoffed. “No one celebrates birthdays on the Isle.”

“No, but you could still do something  _ now _ ,” Ben shrugged. “In fact, if you think about it, you have sixteen birthdays to make up for.”

“Are you… Joking?” Harry tilted his head to the side.

“Well no,” Harry said, rubbing the back of his neck, feeling a touch sheepish. “But-I mean, you don't have to celebrate your birthday. Fairy Godmother doesn't celebrate her birthday, either.”

Harry scoffed, shaking his head. “I thought it was part of Auradon culture, and it was an important thing to engage in.”

“Well, we- a lot of us do like it,” Ben said. “Did she tell you all that?”

Harry nodded, leaning against the wall. “And that I should forget the culture of home.”

Ben glanced out the broken window, feeling like he understood a little better as the view was plagued by the Isle itself off in the distance. “...Does it look different from afar?” He asked curiously. 

“Home?” Harry frowned, looking out the window now as well. “Yeah, it's… Different.” He turned away. 

“...Sorry,” Ben shook his head, trying to focus 

on helping Harry again.

“No, it's- fine,” Harry cleared his throat. “It feels… I- um, I like being able to talk about it,” He admitted quietly. “The whole time I've been here, everyone just tells me not to think about it, but it's  _ right there _ , how can I  _ not? _ ” 

“Yeah?” Ben bit his lip, starting to feel guilty. The view of the Isle had been his father’s idea, saying it would help them to want to move forward, but if that was the reason Harry got stuck, that would be Ben's fault. “Well, you can talk to me about the Isle, and I promise not to tell Fairy Godmother.”

Harry let out a bit of a laugh. “You're just how I imagined you,” He said.

“I hope that's a good thing,” Ben winced. 

Harry laughed again before nodding. Ben had to admit that he liked the sound. “This… This really helped,” He said, holding his hand out for Ben now. “Thank you.”

“Of course,” Ben smiled, taking Harry’s hand, who put his other hand on Ben's shoulder. “It was my pleasure, really. Um, happy birthday again, I'll leave you alone now, thanks for talking to me.”

“Anytime, princey,” Harry smiled back, shoving his hands in his pockets. 

Ben walked out of the Institute feeling satisfied. Harry would be moving on in no time, to bigger and better things. He could do  _ anything _ , and it excited Ben to see.

As he was driving back to Auradon, he decided to call Fairy Godmother and let her know that his visit had been successful, but he found nothing in his pockets, even as he patted himself down.

...Harry had stolen his phone. 

So it might take a  _ little _ bit longer than Ben first thought. 


End file.
